Lian Zi 莲子, 259.7ml, Lao Zi Ni 老紫泥 (Particular High Graininess, and Low Sieve Count), by our Collaborative Craftsman Chen Fa Chu 陈法初。
Dear Friends! Presenting, the Lao Zi NI of particular High Graininess, and of Low Sieve Count! This breed also has inherent high iron content just like the Zhu Ni types. Our Cao Family provided these clay (from a particular famous mine site of Huang Long Shan) to Craftsman Chen Fa Chu and he responded perfectly!
This clay had also been mined and also held by some other clay suppliers, but when passed to other retailers, would be hyped up in various self-given, fanciful, mythical, grandiose names.
At RealZiSha, we do not do these things. In fact, we DO THE REVERSE:
We REMOVE all these fanciful names.
We put it SIMPLY as: Lao Zi Ni (Low Sieve Count).
It is great clay. It is not an expensive type of clay.
We put it thus: the same price as other Lao Zi Ni.
We believe in simplifying, de-hyping, and not be doing things that Grand Master Chen Guo Liang, Grand Master He Dao Hong, Grand Master Shao Shun Sheng, Grand Master Cao Ya Lin, would be laughing their heads off/giggle/look disapprovingly at.
We deconstruct all the fancy clutter, we put them simply as it is.
It is a type of Lao Zi Ni, of high graininess.
In between the graininess are the sumptuous shrinkage lines, which are very beautiful.
This is a very delectable, highly tactile clay type which is really rewarding to have on top of the classic Lao Zi Ni and the classic Di Cao Qing.
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Lian Zi 莲子, is one of the Top Classic Shapes of the YiXing ZiSha Art fraternity!
Craftsman Chen Fa Chu responded to our request to finally bring this back! Extremely favoured by our local Chinese people. The Lian Zi is very balanced and despite its seemingly simple, classic lines, GROW on you after days, weeks and years of use and looking at it at all angles! This is the reason why Lian Zi is an All time Classic, Very Balanced and VERY BEAUTIFUL to look at. We thank Chen Fa Chu for perfecting it and making it so beautiful! Thank you for your grandest support to the honest and dedicated Craftsmen left to fend the Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art.
Here at a handy, newly minted, ~260ml volume.
Lovingly made by our trusted and committed collaborative Craftsman Chen Fa Chu. He thanks you for your grandest support to the honest and dedicated Craftsladies and Craftsmen here left to fend the Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art.
The Stalwart, dedicated to the cause, Craftsman Chen Fa Chu, thanks you, for embracing his work.
Enjoy his superb, classic handwork!!!and let his work accompany you on your tea journey! Thank you Friends!
BRING ONE HOME, USE IT and you will know all about Fully-Handmade ZiSha, the feel of real and quality YiXing ZiSha, the nurturing of Patina, how the true Patina feels and looks like, the Aura exuded from a Fully-Handmade Pot which others simply can't bring forth, and, Craftsman Chen Fa Chu's skills, savour the pour. You will know everything then.
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Explained, https://www.realzisha.com/blogs/news/actual-zisha-landscape-at-yixing , the Craftsman by selling his hard-worked ZiSha craft at $190-$240, $45-$65 goes to the cost of the craft, inclusive of the fees for the firing for the kiln operator (three times per pot), the packaging boxes, and between $32 to $52 for the clay (Zi Ni Di Cao Qing, Duan Ni and upwards) used per pot. Craftsman takes 3 days (fastest 2.5days) to craft a pot. Out of 12 pots he makes a month of 30days, 9 pots will survive the kiln firing successfully. Out of 9 pots, a Craftsman on average sells 7 pots per month. For ZiSha models/designs that are very challenging and more complicated to craft, time taken will be longer, and the failure rate will be higher as well. Zhu Ni pots have higher failure rates than Zi Ni and Duan Ni pots too. Our Craftsmen are crazily committed to the cause of Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and their strictness with their craft and dedication earn our respect. We give a big Thank You all of these Craftsmen, for they are saving what is our common precious tea culture: Tea + Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and Craft.
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Again, another tremendous labor of love by our trusted and committed collaborative Craftsman Chen Fa Chu. It is a team effort and we thank you dearest Friends for your grandest support to the honest and the dedicated Craftsladies and Craftsmen here left to fend the Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art.
The lines and detailing speak of Craftsman Chen Fa Chu's EXTREME CARE AND TIME taken to craft each part, each pot. Hold one, hold up one, swing the work around. Carefully examine his Fully-Handmade work. Look at it from afar, from near, and it will grow on you, with fine detailing with MUCH THOUGHT on each part, with MUCH TIME spent on every part, section. Because this is what Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art should be, and HOW FULLY-HANDMADE ZISHA ART is so different from and light years ahead of the ubiquitous jigger-machined pots and half-handmade pots masquerading under the sales tagline of "fully-handmade zisha" pots. These latter JM/HHM pots are made in what we call 流水线 a.k.a. 'Factory-Line operation' whereby the main pot body after being jigger-machined or coming off from the mould, is passed to the next worker who fits on the spout, and subsequently this second worker will pass the pot on to another worker who will in turn fit on the handle. Continuing so, the pressed lid is likewise passed to another worker who fit on the lid knob. EACH WORKER has NO IDEA what the other one is doing, and they are always working on fixed time lines stated by the boss. For example, the worker being "passed the baton" a pot with the spout just fixed onto the body by his colleague, will only focus on fixing on the handle, with nil to little regard to WHETHER THE HANDLE fixed on will be cohesive with the spout. Each worker has NO idea of HOW THE FINAL POT WILL LOOK LIKE. Beyond poor craftsmanship and clay, the result of such processes are ugly pots with poor cohesiveness which experienced Artists, Craftsmen and collectors will tell from a metre away. Experienced people in us, do not need to pick up a pot to check whether it is fully-handmade or made of zisha, we can tell from a metre away just by looking at the pot.
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The keywords are: Detailing and Cohesiveness.
A GOOD Fully-Handmade ZiSha Work combines great detailing and cohesiveness.
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(Dear Friends, during the photo-taking process, five to six separate spotlights above and around, are used. Looking at the photos, the collar-rim of the lid-body interface thus shows the various spotlights' reflection. You will therefore see 2 to 3 scattered brighter spots around the collar-rim. Some friends had asked before, "is the rim-collar having any irregularity in circularity?". Thus, rest assured. Do not misconstrue the two to three brighter spots around the lid-body rim collar to mean any irregularity in circularity of the rim-collar.
Yes, the rim-collars of all these ZiSha works crafted by our Craftsmen ARE REGULAR in CIRCULARITY :-D, and you can rest assured. Thank you Friends.)
